Summer 2019: Improving Soil Structure Allowed for Timely Planting

Jasper County farmer Roger Zylstra has learned the crop can’t make up for what’s lost on the front end of a growing season. After years of adding 4R Plus practices to improve soil structure, he’s more confident about pushing the front end of the planting window.

This spring he wrapped up planting on May 6. “Each year is unique, and another set of circumstances were thrown at us to show me I’m doing the right things. If you have good soil structure, you have a better chance of getting into and staying in the fields,” he said. “The 4R Plus practices I use, like no-till and cover crops, allowed me to push the front end of the planting window.”

Zylstra has been using no-till for more than 50 years on the ground he owns.

Spring 2019: No-Till Improves Planting Conditions

Spring is an exercise in patience for farmers and it’s a virtue Jasper County Iowa farmer Roger Zylstra has practiced for many years. He’s glad he was introduced to no-till in the ’60s when his father led the operation, as it keeps him from being overly anxious about getting into the fields in the spring.

“Last fall was a reminder that no-till is the way to go if you want to keep the soil in place and improve its structure to support machinery,” he said in regard to the long, drawn-out harvest. “I’m thankful our fields don’t have big ruts to repair this spring.”

Zylstra says farmers in his area might be getting nervous because it was too wet in the fall for tillage and nitrogen applications. He recognizes that every farm operation is different, but he has had longtime success keeping yields trending higher in his no-till system.